Schools and organisations across New Zealand evacuated buildings on Tuesday after receiving anonymous violent threats by email, prompting a nationwide police investigation.

Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said officers were examining the emailed threats sent to schools and other institutions across the country on Tuesday morning. "At this stage, police perceive the threats to be low risk," he said. "The cybercrime team, supported by staff in other police districts, have initiated an investigation and are working to determine the source of the emails."

Police Minister Mark Mitchell said officers would treat the threats seriously as they investigated. Officers are working to establish whether the threats were intended as a hoax or to disrupt schools. Mitchell said an overseas origin was possible but he had seen no evidence of that.

Schools respond

Whangaparāoa School received an anonymous bomb threat and asked parents to collect children from the school field area. Principal Kevin Cronin said the school doubted the validity of the threat but felt their role was to ensure children and staff safety.

Orewa College went into lockdown due to an ongoing security incident and worked with police. In Christchurch, Christchurch Girls High School entered lockdown around 10am following receipt of a threatening email, lifting the lockdown around 10.30am.

Acting principal Sonja Bailey said the school received guidance from the Ministry of Education following the threatening email. All students, staff and persons were safely accounted for.

Wider targets

The threats extended beyond schools. Ara Institute of Canterbury received a bomb threat that resulted in evacuations of its Christchurch and Timaru campuses. Chief executive Darren Mitchell said all campuses were evacuated and tenants advised to go home as a precautionary measure.

Several media organisations including RNZ also received threats.

Previous incidents

Earlier in 2026, police arrested an Invercargill teenager for allegedly making nationwide bomb threats to organisations including schools and the Department of Corrections.

The cybercrime team continues to investigate with support from officers in multiple districts.